HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY MICHELE MONTAS
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Monday, June 30, 2008
SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES PROGRESS ON IMPLEMENTATION OF SECURITY COUNCIL
RESOLUTION 1701
The Secretary-General
welcomes the
progress on the urgent humanitarian aspects of Security Council
Resolution 1701 achieved by the recent decision of the Israeli government.
These involve the return of the two abducted Israeli soldiers and the solution
of the cases of Lebanese prisoners held in Israel. He looks forward to the
signing and the full implementation of the negotiated agreement in the near
future.
He hopes that the envisaged humanitarian moves will
encourage further steps on implementing other parts of the resolution and
contribute to further humanitarian moves.
Asked whether the Secretary-General would also ask Israel
to release thousands of Palestinian prisoners, the Spokeswoman said that was a
subject of negotiations, and that the United Nations has been doing all that
it can to help that process.
SECRETARY-GENERAL EXPRESSES CONDOLENCES IN WAKE OF DEATHS OF TWO GUATEMALAN
OFFICIALS
The Secretary-General of the United Nations is
saddened by the
news of the helicopter crash that took the lives of Vinicio Gómez and Edgar
Hernández, Minister and Vice-Minister of the Interior of Guatemala.
He wishes to express his sincere condolences to the
Government of Guatemala, its people and the families for this tragic loss,
both personally and for the important work they were doing at the head of the
Ministry.
DEPUTY
SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS ON AFRICAN LEADERS TO STAND BY PEOPLE OF ZIMBABWE
Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro this morning
addressed the
leaders of the African Union at their summit meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh,
Egypt, telling them that we must stand by the people of Zimbabwe, who are
facing an extremely grave crisis.
She called the situation in Zimbabwe “the single greatest
challenge to regional stability in southern Africa, not only because of its
terrible humanitarian and security consequences, but also because of the
dangerous political precedent it sets”.
She noted that, regrettably, the run-off election went
ahead last Friday despite the concerns raised and calls made by the
international community, including by the Security Council, to suspend the
vote. This is a moment of truth for regional leaders, the Deputy
Secretary-General warned.
In a
statement issued
on Sunday from Japan, the Secretary-General expressed his support for the
views expressed by the President of the Security Council regretting the
decision by the Government of Zimbabwe to go ahead with the presidential
elections.
The Secretary-General has said repeatedly that conditions
were not in place for a free and fair election and observers have confirmed
this from the deeply flawed process. The outcome did not reflect the true and
genuine will of the Zimbabwean people or produce a legitimate result.
The Secretary-General encourages efforts of the two sides
to negotiate a political solution that would end violence and intimidation.
He supports the efforts of the African Union and Southern African Development
Community (SADC) to promote an agreement acceptable to the people of Zimbabwe.
Asked whether the Secretary-General would refuse to
recognize Robert Mugabe as the President of Zimbabwe, the Spokeswoman
clarified that it is not up to the Secretary-General to recognize a
Government, but for Member States to do so.
MIGIRO WELCOMES
AFRICAN SUMMIT’S FOCUS ON DEVELOPMENT GOALS
The Deputy Secretary-General, in her
statement at the
African Union summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, welcomed the Summit’s focus on the
Millennium Development Goals—including
the targets on water and sanitation. With only seven and a half years to go,
she said, we must do everything possible to accelerate progress on the Goals.
The Deputy Secretary-General added that we have seen
progress in a number of post-conflict African States, with Sierra Leone,
Liberia and Guinea-Bissau all embarking on longer-term efforts to consolidate
peace. Their efforts deserve greater support from the international community,
she said.
And she said that Somalia, a country that has some of the
worst indicators on earth, has taken a step toward improving stability. The
Deputy Secretary-General welcomed the recent Djibouti Agreement on Somalia and
called on all parties to abide by their commitments.
SECRETARY-GENERAL VISITS JAPAN AHEAD OF G-8 SUMMIT
The Secretary-General is in Japan today, where, among
other events, he met with Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. The Secretary-General
and his wife had an audience with the Emperor and Empress of Japan, and later
in the day with the Crown Prince and Princess of Japan.
After his meeting with Prime Minister Fukuda, the
Secretary-General
told the press that they had an excellent discussion on the major
challenges the world faces, and he particularly thanked the Prime Minister for
his strong personal leadership and tireless efforts to make the coming G-8
summit meeting in Toyako a great success.
The Secretary-General said that the summit would be a
major milestone in the common effort to mobilize international action on such
challenges as climate change, the food crisis and the
Millennium Development Goals.
He added that he and the Prime Minister had paid particular attention to
Africa, given Japan’s long-standing effort to turn it into “a continent of
hope”.
He also said he appreciated the news that Japan is going
to send its Self Defense Forces to the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS)
and also establish a peacekeeping training centre with financial support.
Earlier, the Secretary-General met with the Foreign
Minister, Masahiko Koumura, who hosted a luncheon in his honour. He also met
with Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura and with Akihiro Ohta, the
Chief Representative of the New Komei Party.
The Secretary-General began his official programme in
Tokyo early Sunday evening by attending a reception hosted by the Global
Compact Network of Japan. He
told the gathered business leaders that the race is underway to develop
and provide needed solutions, such as clean technology, renewable energy,
efficient products and processes, and sustainable goods and services.
On Sunday, he also took part in a Town Hall
meeting on Climate Change at Kyoto University. He said that Japan, the
world's second largest economy and a leader in green technology, had a "moral
and political responsibility" to play a bigger role in tackling climate
change.
SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS NEW HEAD OF U.N. PEACEKEEPING
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the
appointment of Mr. Alain Le Roy of France as Under-Secretary-General for
Peacekeeping Operations. Mr.
Le Roy will replace Mr. Jean-Marie Guéhenno.
The Secretary-General is grateful for Mr. Guéhenno’s
dedicated service to the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and for his
important contribution to the achievement of its goals. He recalled the strong
sense of commitment and professionalism shown consistently by Mr. Guéhenno to
the fulfilment of his responsibilities.
As the new Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping
Operations, Mr. Alain Le Roy brings to the job an extensive experience in
public administration, management and international affairs, both at the
political level and in the field. After serving in the private sector as a
petroleum engineer, he joined the public service as Sous-préfet , then as
Counsellor at the Cour des comptes (French Audit office).
Mr. Le Roy was appointed as Deputy to the UN Special
Coordinator for Sarajevo and Director of Operations for the restoration of
essential public services. He went on missions for the U.N. Development
Programme in Mauritania and was appointed UN Regional Administrator in Kosovo
(West Region).
After having been National Coordinator for the Stability
Pact for South-east Europe in the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he was
appointed European Union Special Representative in The Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia. He was subsequently appointed Assistant Secretary for
Economic and Financial Affairs in the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs,
before serving as the French Ambassador to Madagascar.
He is currently Conseiller Maître à la Cour des comptes
and is serving as Ambassador in charge of the Union for the Mediterranean
Initiative since September 2007.
NEW JOINT
U.N.-AFRICAN UNION CHIEF MEDIATOR FOR DARFUR NAMED
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the African Union
Chairperson have appointed Mr. Djibril Yipènè Bassolé of Burkina Faso as Joint
AU-UN Chief Mediator for
Darfur. Mr. Bassolé will conduct the mediation efforts in Sudan on a
full-time basis. He will be based in El Fasher. The UN and AU Special Envoys
for Darfur, Jan Eliasson and Salim Ahmed Salim, will remain available for
advice and engagement as required.
Mr. Djibril Yipènè Bassolé comes to this position with
extensive experience in multilateral diplomacy and mediation processes. Since
2007, Mr. Bassolé has been serving as his country’s Foreign Minister. Between
2000 and 2007, he was Minister of Security and played a key role in
facilitating the Ouagadougou Agreement of 2007 signed between President
Laurent Gbagbo of Côte d’Ivoire and Forces Nouvelles leader (now Prime
Minister) Guillaume Soro.
Mr. Bassolé also worked as a Member of the Mediation
Committee for the ‘Touareg’ conflict in Niger (1994 - 1995) and was a Member
of the International Committee for the monitoring of the elections in Togo
(1993 - 1994).
U.N.
PEACEKEEPERS IN NORTH DARFUR RELEASED AFTER BEING HELD HOSTAGE FOR SEVERAL HOURS
In North Darfur, a patrol of 38 peacekeepers from the
UN-AU Mission (UNAMID) has now been
released after being held at gun-point by a faction of the Sudan
Liberation Army (SLA) for more than five hours. The peacekeepers were denied
entry to the Zamzam camp for internally displaced persons by members of the
SLA/Minni faction (SLA/M).
When the patrol attempted to return to their base, they
were prevented from doing so. The SLA/M soldiers were demanding immediate
compensation for an injured member who was involved in a motorbike accident
with a UNAMID vehicle on 25 June. That accident is presently being
investigated by the Government of Sudan and UNAMID Military Police, but the
SLA/M soldiers wanted immediate compensation without the necessary legal
procedures being followed.
UNAMID dispatched reinforcements to the camp to assist in
the release of the detained peacekeepers. The patrol was finally released,
following negotiations between UNAMID and the SLA/M leadership.
WFP DRIVER IN
SOUTHERN SUDAN KILLED IN AMBUSH
The World Food Programme has sent its condolences to the
family of one of its drivers, who was
killed in an
ambush over the weekend in southern Sudan.
28-year-old Muzamil Ramadan Sida, from Uganda, was shot
and killed after delivering food to a WFP warehouse in Juba. His death brings
to five the number of WFP-contracted drivers or their assistants killed in
South Sudan this year.
There is, however, welcome news for aid workers from more
than 200 organizations who depend on WFP’s humanitarian air service. With
banditry and insecurity making it dangerous for humanitarians to travel by
road in many parts of southern Sudan and Darfur, that service will
remain up and
running through the end of September, after receiving donations of nearly $15
million.
The funds are still not enough to prevent some service
cuts, and the air service has no funds to operate beyond the end of September.
ECONOMIC AND
SOCIAL COUNCIL OPENS HIGH-LEVEL SEGMENT
The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) today opened its
high-level segment,
which runs through Thursday.
Under-Secretary-General Sha Zukang this morning delivered
a message
on behalf of the Secretary-General. In it, he noted that we are at a critical
juncture in the implementation of the UN development agenda. The fragile state
of the major developed market economies, persistent global imbalances and
soaring oil and other commodity prices are slowing global economic growth,
while rising food and energy prices are hitting the poor and vulnerable
especially hard.
“No social or economic order is secure if it fails to
benefit the majority of those who live under it,” he said, adding that we
should also all have serious concerns about a system whose wealthiest 400
citizens command more resources than its “bottom billion”.
He called on the international community to pursue truly
concerted efforts to redress the woes of the global economy, which also
include the challenges of climate change and skepticism about globalization
and fears that it is leaving many people behind. This session of ECOSOC should
give new impetus to achieving economic growth, social development and
environmental protection, he said.
He added that the first-ever
Development
Cooperation Forum, which opens this afternoon, should become the principal
venue for global dialogue and policy review of international development
cooperation. It should also focus on how the current aid effectiveness
framework is not sufficiently responsive to development issues that cut across
multiple sectors, such as human rights, gender equality, and environmental
sustainability.
SECURITY
COUNCIL CLARIFIES SANCTIONS ON AL-QAEDA, TALIBAN
The Security Council this morning unanimously
adopted a
resolution clarifying how Member States are to implement the sanctions
measures that have been previously imposed on the individuals, groups and
entities linked to al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
Council members then received a briefing on the work of
the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate by its chief, Mike Smith. He
presented a survey on the implementation of resolution 1373, which set up the
Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee.
Today is the last day of the US Presidency of the
Security Council. Tomorrow, Vietnam will assume the Presidency of the Council
for the month of July.
The Spokeswoman declined to offer any response from the
Secretary-General to claims that the resolution does not deal with how people
are to be removed from the Consolidated List of individuals linked to al-Qaeda
and the Taliban, noting that the issue is a matter for the Security Council.
U.N.
HUMANITARIAN CHIEF WRAPS UP FIRST VISIT TO AFGHANISTAN
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John
Holmes spoke to the press in Kabul yesterday about his first visit to
Afghanistan, where he discussed the
worsening humanitarian situation in the country.
He said that the most serious immediate problem is food
insecurity as a result of the rise in global food prices and the recent
drought. He noted that the UN appeal earlier this year for $81 million to deal
with that food crisis has been well-funded, but more may be needed, so work is
being done on another, larger appeal.
Holmes added that the number of civilian casualties from
the fighting in the country is a source of great concern. He said that most of
the casualties are caused by insurgents, but there are also still significant
numbers caused by the international military forces.
NEW AGREEMENT
ALLOWS WFP TO EXPAND FOOD ASSISTANCE TO DPRK
The World Food Programme (WFP) has
signed an
agreement with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea that will allow it to
rapidly increase food assistance to more than five million people.
WFP will also expand its operations into 128 counties, up
from just 50. New areas covered include the traditionally food-insecure
Northeast and some counties that have never before been accessible to
humanitarian agencies.
The agreement will also allow WFP to send nearly 50 more
international aid workers to the DPRK. They will oversee and monitor the
delivery of food to make sure it reaches those most in need.
Following the signing of the agreement on Friday, a ship
from the United States arrived Sunday in the port of Nampo, carrying 37,000
tonnes of wheat. It’s the first installment of a U.S. food aid pledge of up
to 500,000 tonnes.
NEW RAPID TEST
FOR DRUG-RESISTANT TUBERCULOSIS TO BE LAUNCHED
The World Health Organization today took part in the
unveiling of a new rapid test for Multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB).
Instead of waiting two to three months for a diagnosis – during which time
they can transmit the disease to others – patients in 16 developing countries
will now receive their test results in just two days.
In addition to enhancing lab facilities and training lab
staff, today’s initiatives will also boost the supply of drugs needed to treat
MDR-TB in these and nearly 40 other countries.
It is estimated that only two percent of MDR-TB cases
worldwide are diagnosed and treated appropriately, mainly because of
inadequate laboratory services, WHO says. It is hoped today’s initiatives will
increase that number at least sevenfold over the next four years.
UNDP ANNOUNCES
NEW HEAD OF ETHICS OFFICE
The UN Development Programme (UNDP)
has announced the appointment of a new head of its Ethics Office.
Ms. Elia Armstrong of Canada has been working as a Senior
Governance and Public Administration Officer for the Department of Economic
and Social Affairs (DESA) since
December 2006. Prior to that, she helped set up the operations of the new UN
Ethics Office in the Secretariat.
She also worked for six years as a Public Administration
officer for DESA, and as a consultant on Civil Service Reform, primarily on
Public Sector Ethics.
Ms. Armstrong replaces Karunesh Bhalla, who has served as
head of UNDP’s Ethics Office since last December.
CHINA QUAKE
CAUSED $6 BILLION IN DAMAGES TO AGRICULTURE, FAO SAYS
Last month’s earthquake in China’s Sichuan province
caused an estimated $6 billion in damage to the agricultural sector, according
to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO).
An FAO assessment mission that recently visited Sichuan
province found that over 30 million people in rural communities have been
severely hit, losing most of their assets. FAO notes that it could take three
to five years to rebuild the agricultural sector in Sichuan.
OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
UNTV STAFF CONTRACTS ARE NOT WITH U.N. DIRECTLY:
Asked about the expiring contracts of some UNTV staff, the Spokeswoman noted
that the United Nations does not contract those staff directly; rather, the
United Nations hires the contractor and negotiates with that company, and that
company in turn hires the workers. The issue of contracts, she said, is between
the company and its employees.
Office of the Spokesperson for the
Secretary-General
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